Abstract: An intelligent multi-level resource discovery and analysis system and method identify and characterize physical, logical and virtual resources of a multi-vendor, multi-class, multi-layer network by automatically generating and sending discovery commands that query resources as to their addresses, identities, characteristics and operational states, and by analyzing responses to the commands to identify continuously and in real time resource vendors, types, operating states, configurations of resources and network topology, and changes to resource and network conditions. Externally entered or dynamically discovered discovery parameters define the types and level of detail of information discovered and analyzed.

Abstract: Configuration information describing a plurality of network devices in a multi-vendor, multi-class, multi-layer network is analyzed using an ontology analysis to create resource profiles comprising descriptions, configurations, inter-relationships and states of the network devices. Predefined network operational policies are applied to a virtual construct of the network created using the resource profiles determine compliance of the network with the policies. Configuration information is received dynamically and stored in a database to create a historical record of network configurations that can be analyzed to correlate configuration changes with operational changes.